Kategori: Dizzy Reed

In a brand new interview with VerdamMnis E-Magazine, GUNS N’ ROSES guitarist Richard Fortus and keyboardist Dizzy Reed were asked if they will be involved in the songwriting process for the band’s long-awaited follow-up to 2008’s “Chinese Democracy”.

Hookers & Blow, the band featuring Guns N’ Roses keyboardist Dizzy Reed and Quiet Riot guitarist Alex Grossi, have announced an East Coast run of dates kicking off on January 2nd in Long Branch, NJ.

The band is excited to add longtime friend and world renowned stand-up comic Don Jamieson (VH1’s That Metal Show) as the “Master Of Ceremonies” for their upcoming January dates. Rounding out the HN’B lineup will be W.A.S.P. and Hotel Diablo bassist Mike Duda and Type O Negative / Danzig drummer Johnny Kellly along with an array of special guests.

Guns N’ Roses keyboardist Dizzy Reed shared a brief update on the band’s new album progress, saying that things are definitely happening.

Asked by Rock Revival on whether the fresh record’s coming any time soon, Dizzy replied:

“That’s the plan, although we haven’t really discussed it for a while. There’s a lot of stuff people need to hear that’s ready to come out. It’s gonna happen, I just don’t have an actual date for you yet. My fingers are crossed, but they’re getting a little bit looser. I think it’ll be happening soon.”

In other album updates, frontman Axl Rose has confirmed that the group already has two albums worth of unreleased material.

“We recorded a lot of things before ‘Chinese [Democracy]’ was out,” he told the Revolver Magazine. “We’ve worked more on some of those things and weâ€™ve written a few new things. But basically, we have what I call kind of the second half of ‘Chinese.’

“That’s already recorded. And then we have a remix album made of the songs from Chinese. That’s been done for a while, too.”

As the band’s latest album, “Chinese Democracy,” saw its release in November 2008 via Geffen Records.

Sight Of Sound recently conducted an interview with GUNS N’ ROSES keyboardist Dizzy Reed. You can now listen to the chat in the YouTube clip below.

Asked what was the most difficult thing about jumping into a band like GUNS N’ ROSES that was already so enormously popular, Dizzy told GlideMagazine.com: “The most difficult thing was just trying to gain acceptance. First, by the band, because Axl [Rose, vocals] really wanted me in the band and he said that was the way it was going to be. You know, we had been talking about it for a few years before that, before they became big, actually, and I think the other guys weren’t really as keen on the idea of having a sixth guy in the band. When I joined, it was still all five original guys. But I think over time they started to realize that I could contribute to the music and I wasn’t that bad of a guy to be around. [Laughs] And they realized I wasn’t going anywhere, basically, and so slowly I started gaining acceptance by them. But then it took a long time for a lot of the fans to really accept the fact that I was in the band. Quite a few years, actually. But now it’s been twenty-three years and I’m still in the band.”

Regarding whether he regretted the fact that he didn’t go to GUNS N’ ROSES’ Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction ceremony, Dizzy said: “No, I don’t regret it. You know, myself and Axl and Izzy [Stradlin, guitar], we made a decision. There’s still some things I don’t understand about it. There was opposition regarding a performance and having the current lineup perform, which to me was just ridiculous because Tommy Stinson has been in the band for, like, sixteen years. And Richard Fortus has been in the band for twelve years. Basically, most of those guys have been a member of GUNS N’ ROSES longer than the guys who were there. So that didn’t make any sense to me. I didn’t understand who was behind that or why that had to be like that. But I want to say this: Being accepted into the Hall Of Fame and being told I was going to be accepted into the Hall Of Fame, I’m very honored to have my name mentioned along with all the other artists that are in the Hall Of Fame and I don’t take that for granted. And personally, I don’t think I’m worthy. But it was an honor to be told that. But then again, the lineup issues and that we could each only bring one guest. If there are any other guests, I’d have to pay full price for tickets and it’s not cheap. So it was like, well, I can take my mom but not my dad. I could take my wife but not my son. I could take one of my kids. I could take my brother but not my best friend. I don’t know, I’m scratching my head: Where does that money go? [Laughs] Does Rod Stewart or Meat Loaf have that problem? So yeah, there were just some things that I didn’t quite understand that couldn’t be answered, so I had good reason to do what I did. It is what it is and I don’t regret it.”

Asked what his strongest memories are of the time when GUNS N’ ROSES released “Use Your Illusion I” and “Use Your Illusion II” simultaneously in 1991 and they became the biggest rock band on the planet, Reed told The Maitland Mercury: “It was definitely a pinch-myself-every-once-in-a-while situation to see if I was dreaming. But it I had known them before they even got signed and Axl [Rose, GUNS N’ ROSES lead singer] had talked about having me in the band from very early on and then to watch them become so gigantic, I was always wondering if it was really going to happen. But he’s a man of his word and when they were ready to start tracking those songs and those albums he called me and I got a phone call a couple of days later from Del James who was putting together the press release and said, ‘Congratulations, you’re in GUNS N’ ROSES.’ When I joined the band, they were chartering this jet that we used to fly around on everywhere for those three years. So I toured with a major band for three years and one day I was sitting around with some of the guys in the crew and they were all telling bus stories â€” stories about things that happened on the [tour] bus. It got to me and they said, ‘C’mon, Dizzy, what are some of your bus stories?’ and I said, ‘I’ve never been on a bus.’ But, you know what? I’ve been on a shitload of buses since then. I prefer it these days â€” I like being on the bus and rolling down the highway.”

On any given night there are numerous musical choices to celebrate the weekend. One surefire hit is to take in a concert at Las Vegas premier concert venue Vampâ€™d. On Nov. 2 the club featured Hookers â€˜Nâ€™ Blow featuring Guns â€˜nâ€™ Roses keyboard player Dizzy Reed. Over the past ten years I havenâ€™t seen Hookers â€˜Nâ€™ Blow perform on the East Coast. Tonight it was the first time the band performed in Las Vegas. So needless to say, it was going to be a full Hookers â€˜Nâ€™ Blow extravaganza.

Hookers â€˜Nâ€™ Blow features an All-Star line-up including Dizzy Reed of GNR on keyboards and vocals, Alex Grossi of Quiet Riot on guitar, Matt Starr on drums of Ace Frehley and Burning Rain and on bass Mike Duda from Wasp. The night included many Guns â€˜nâ€™ Roses hits including â€œItâ€™s So Easy,â€ â€œUsed To Love Herâ€ and â€œDonâ€™t Cry.â€ The show also included favorite cover tunes including â€œZiggy Stardust.â€

If anyone has ever seen Guns â€˜nâ€™ Roses, then you are familiar with the dynamic caliber of keyboard player Dizzy Reed. Dizzy who is heavily influenced by The Rolling Stones brought his bluesy rock style here to Vampâ€™d tonight and shined. Guitarist Alex Grossi is one of the top guitarists in the business. Alex has a special flair of showcasing his talent of the freeboard with much passion. His style is reminiscent of a young Randy Rhoads. Tonightâ€™s show was filled with many special guest stars including Jizzy Pearl. Jizzy performed two songs with the band. The night hit a special climax as GNR guitarist DJ Ashba took the stage to a riveting response of â€œTush.â€ Also Jeff Duncan of Armored Saint performed â€œSin City.â€

It was a night filled with many great moments. The band jammed until the wee hours of the morning, as this party was just getting started. Highlight of the set was â€œPatienceâ€ and bluesy encore â€œSympathy For The Devil.â€ Hopefully the band will return to Vampâ€™d real soon! Check out the links below. The band has new merchandise. Be the first on the block to sport a new Hookers â€˜Nâ€™ Blow shirt. Special Thanks to Alex Grossi for making this review possible.

If you think your life is busy, take a look at Dizzy Reedâ€™s recent agenda: As the main keyboard player in Guns N Roses, he has been touring hard all over the world for the past few years. He just finished up playing with the Dead Daisies on the Uproar Festival tour, with a few stops here and there to write and record some new songs with them. His band Hookers & Blow are playing every Monday night in October at the infamous Whisky A Go Go in Hollywood. He has another side band called The Dick Pistols. And on top of all that, he has some music that he is itching to release as a solo record. And thatâ€™s only his public life. When he is not making music, he is a husband and father, loves playing golf and on the day we had our conversation, his apartment was in the middle of a renovation.